Why Have A Residential Electrician Check Your Electric Panel

As homeowners, it is part of your responsibility to work with a licensed and trained residential electrician to help you take care of and maintain your electrical system. Part of your responsibility is to call them immediately the instant you suspect something is wrong with your electrical system. This is especially true if your house was built more than 25 years ago.

You should know that houses built during this time were installed with an electrical system that was deemed suitable and efficient then. However, considering the technological advancements of today, the electrical system that was installed years before may no longer be sufficient to provide for your electrical needs. Note that your electrical needs today are a lot bigger than it was 25 years ago.

Because of this, if your house was built during that time, you should have a residential electrician in Myrtle Beach check your electric panel and determine whether or not it needs an upgrade. On the other hand, if you are not sure when your house was built, you will know that you need an electric panel upgrade if notice any of the following signs:

1. Flickering or dimming lights – Take notice of your lights when you switch on any of your major electric appliance. If your lights in any part of the house dims or flickers, it means your electric panel may no longer be suitable for your electric needs. A major electric appliance can be your refrigerator, washer, dryer, or air conditioner.

2. Hot or warm electric panel – Check your electric panel and find out if it feels hot or warm to your touch. The best time to check is when you are using several of your electric appliances, outlets, and lighting fixtures at the same time.

3. Out of the market brands of electric panel – One sign that could help you determine the age of your house is the brand of the electric panel that you have. Old brands, particularly the ones that were used 25 or more years ago, are already off the market due to being a safety hazard. These brands include Federal Pacific, GTW/Sylvania, Zinsco, and I-T-E Pushmatic. Check all the panels in your house and find out what brand they are. If they are any of them are off the market brands, you will need to have your Myrtle Beach residential electrician replace all your electric panels as soon as possible.

4. Split-buss electric panels – Another sign that could tell you how old your house is if you are still using split-buss electric panels. These were very popular and efficient back in the 1960’s and 1970’s. The difference between this type of electric panels with that of the ones that we are using today is the number of circuit breakers.

Electric panels today have only one circuit breaker to shut down the entire panel. Split-buss electric panels, on the other hand, have numerous circuit breakers. This was deemed effective and safe at the time. However, considering today’s average home has several TV’s, computers, refrigerators and all other electric appliances, a split-buss electric panel is no longer efficient and safe. In fact, having multiple electric panels may result to overloading and power outages. It is less reliable and highly dangerous, putting you and your family’s safety at risk.

If you notice any of these signs, make sure you call your electrician at once. Contact MB Electrician Pros now and speak with their residential electrician.